"Is she wounded? Is she sick?" asked George as he bent down for a closer look.

"I'm not sure," the King answered softly. He was nervous and there was fear in his voice. "I must move her to the castle before dark. The nights are getting cold and I can't leave her out here. Besides, we can assess her situation much better there."

The King placed his large, strong hands on either side of his ailing friend and tried to scoop her up gently into his now shaking hands. His entire body trembled with tension. Warm, salty tears began to run slowly down his royal cheeks.

Taeya's frail body rested in the warmth of the Kings cupped hands. He held them close to his chest so the wind would not harm her. With slow, steady steps, he walked towards the castle, not wanting to stumble or fall for fear of dropping his precious cargo.

George was right by his side. Walking in silence. The young boy felt a large hard lump develop in his throat just before he felt the first tear makes it's decent down his own cheek.

Once inside the castle, the King asked George to get the small, silk feather pillow and bring it to him. Cradling Taeya in his hands, he himself was not able to pick the pillow up and carry it to the table. George was not familiar with the room and started searching with his eyes for what the man needed. The King nodded by shifting his body and also moving his head in the direction until George saw the pillow the King wanted.

The pillow would provide the softest bed the King could think of for Taeya. George got it quickly and brought it over to the frightened King. He watched while the tall man next to him, ever so gently opened his hands and carefully placed the frail body of the butterfly on the fluffy pillow. George could see the concentration on the worried King's face. He also noticed that beads of sweet were breaking out on the man's forehead. The tension in the air was extremely thick!

The nervous King looked to see if a wing was broken. He examined one wing and then the next, finding nothing unusual. He tried to determine if she was sick. Neither one dared to breath because they were afraid they would blow her off the pillow or cause a draft that would make her sicker. Therefore, any time they need to breathe, they turned their heads away from the ailing butterfly.

Taeya was so weak; when she tried to get up she found she couldn't even lift her head. She wanted to talk but her voice was so soft, that the King had a hard time hearing her. He bent over the table and put his ear close to her face just in time to hear her say, "It's time for me to leave you now, my dear King. My time is up, and I must go."

"Go! Go where? Taeya you can't go! I need you with me, by my side! You are my dearest friend. I can't live without you! Taeya, my dear sweet Taeya, I love you! Do you hear me? I beg you not to leave me. I'll do anything, absolutely anything if you'll just stay."

The King was trembling. He felt so lost and scared. His heart hurt so much and he wanted the pain to go away. The loss of Taeya would be more than he could bare and he knew it.

"This is a fine castle," he stammered, choking back the tears, "and this is a fine pillow for your bed. There's no reason why you can't stay here forever. It's getting to cold for you to live in the woods. I, I, I wasn't thinking. I should have suggested this on the first cool day. Taeya, please live here and things will be fine, I swear it. We can talk and share our thoughts like we always have. It will be wonderful, and you'll get better. We'll, we'll we'll find someone," he stammered, wiping his moist cheek on the sleeve of his royal robe, sobbed, then caught his breath and continued, "I'll find someone who can make you well. I'll travel the globe for a specialist if necessary."

"I don't think that will be possible," George began, "Taeya is right. I think it is her time to go. She has to leave us soon."

"What? What is this I hear, coming from a boy I thought was my friend," the King whispered in a deep-angered voice, his lower lip trembling. He straightened his body from its bent position, turned to stare at the boy and was so upset his entire body shook.

"Taeya is a butterfly," George explained nervously, trying to be patient and understanding of the King's pain. "I just remembered reading that a butterfly will only live a very short time. No longer than one season. The season of her life is over. You are a good friend, and I truly don't want to hurt you, but I must speak the truth here. I have a feeling Taeya was trying to tell us something yesterday when she was talking about her home on the Island of Glee. We can't stop the nature of things Sire."

"No! I can't just let her go," the King exclaimed, letting out a royal sob. "I must find a way to save her. Think, George. What else did you read? Did you learn of any instance where this was not true? Perhaps the most unusual ones live longer than the others you heard about do. Certainly Taeya would fall into that category! Can't you think of anything that could possibly save a butterfly? Is there no magic, we could use for just this once? Think, George please think, we must find a way to save Taeya. We MUST!"

Taeya lay on the plush pillow, which had been placed on a table next to a comfortable overstuffed couch. On the other side of the table there was a large chair. The material on both pieces of furniture was well worn. A warm blanket lay folded on the edge of the couch. The King had recently taken it out of the hall closet with the anticipation of the colder nights ahead. The heartbroken man sat down on the couch and George took the chair. The King swung his legs up on the couch. Leaning his chest against the side of the couch, he let his arms rest on the edge of the well-worn piece of furniture. His upper body hung over the side of the couch next to the table. His elbows were bent and his hands held his head. He looked at the pillow in front of him trying hard to think of a way to save this sad situation. The man felt the first crack as his heart was beginning to break.

They had lost all track of time in the search for Taeya. The sun was almost gone and the dark of night would be upon them at any moment. It was George who finally realized how dark the room was becoming. He slowly got up and lit some candles. This gave the room a soft, warm glow.

The King wiped tears from his face, using the sleeve of his royal robe again. He got up slowly, as if he had the weight of the world to carry with him, and started a fire in the large rock fireplace. Filled with the desire to do something, the only action he could think of was to build a big fire.

Feeling stunned, lost, and consumed with grief over the thought of loosing Taeya, the King was hoping that the fire would keep her warm. Perhaps the only thing wrong with her was that she had a slight chill. The warmth of the fire might be all that was needed to bring her around. When the fire was roaring, he moved back to the couch. He plopped down into the softness of the cushions and began remembering the past spring and summer.

What fun they had all had! Every time he'd been with Taeya had been great. Their conversation was always interesting. He learned so much from her. Once, she'd been the only cheerful, colorful thing on a very dismal, depressing island. With her encouragement and guidance, things had sure turned around for the better here. The sad King was so lost in his memories, that he didn't hear George at first.

"What, was that you said, George? What?" stammered the King, pulling himself out of his memories.

"I said, I've racked my brain and I can't think of a thing that would help Taeya. I don't think anyone can stop the natural process of such things, unless we did use magic," said George.

"I would use magic, or anything else, if only I knew how." said the King in desperation.

"We wouldn't have to," exclaimed George, "if only we could find that old wizard. Let me think for a moment. When I was a baby I remember tales of an old wizard. Legend has it that a wizard used to live on this island, unless it was just a make believe story intended to help me fall asleep."

"A Wizard lives here, George! On this Island?" shouted the King jumping up off the couch. "Well, we must find him. Let's go get him George. We've got to bring him back here at once! We must hurry George! I don't know how much time we have. Taeya is so weak and she's getting weaker. Just look at her. She's your friend too George. Don't tell me you would give up on her now!"

Their tiny friend was sleeping now, but her breathing was dangerously slow.

"IT'S ALWAYS DEEPEST AT THE BOTTOM OF THE WELL

Imagine, if you will, that someone threw you down a large, dark, damp well, and that by some miracle you survived the fall. Now, at the bottom of this ominous well, try to picture how you would get out of it.

Falling off "center" with ones self is like falling down a well. The decent is just slower and therefore harder to detect. You may not even realize that you are falling at all. You may not discover you have fallen into this ibis, until it is to late and you've already hit bottom. Once at the deepest bottom of this well, you may not even want to try to find a way out for some time. It may actually feel comforting. Like being back in the womb where you started this life journey. Yet, eventually you will become sick of the place and begin to explore your surrounding, looking for a way out of the dark.

I don't know you, and you don't know me. We all have our own hard/difficulties to handle throughout our lives. Each life has its own pitfalls. Each of our lives is different, though we may go through similar types of dilemmas. You can't solve my problems and I can't solve yours.

From the time each of us is born, we set our own path and travel our own road. Each of us on this planet is ultimately responsible for ourselves. We each make choices and must live with the choices we make. We have to make hundreds of thousands of decisions in our lives. If later the decision seemed incorrect, you must then decide how to correct it and what the new direction will be for you. Each of us is the Captain of our own ship for sure. At first we need the lessons our parents teach us. Adults attempt to give us the tools to make good choices and decisions. We can always choose to be happy or sad, angry or compassionate, greedy or generous etc. We can choose to be depressed or seek a way out in a more positive direction.

The journey from here to there is not always on a smooth, straight road for any of us. Often times there are curves that make you think of what would happen if you were to loose control. You may hit a bump or a rut in the road that can even cause damage to your transportation, causing you to slow down or even stop. If you loose control enough, you could run right off of the road into a ditch. Loosing control at a high rate of speed could even cause your vehicle to flip and roll over. In certain conditions, the machine might even cease running altogether.

Your body has always been your main vehicle and when you loose control of it through neglect, illness or accident, the examples above will also run true for you physically. People tend to take better care of their cars than they do their bodies. Racing at a high rate of speed will also break you down. If the body is out of balance and remains that way for an extended period of time, it will slowly break down. You may not feel it at first or realize that there is a problem, yet over time it will take its toll on the one vehicle you use the most.

We balance our checkbooks so that we will not have a deficit, but our bodies need the proper balance too or they will fall into a deficit condition. This deficit condition may sneak up on you. It may take some time for the body to deteriorate to the point were you even notice it. By then the damage is done.
Like a seesaw or a scale, the body needs to be in balance for health and well-being.

We think of our bodies as arms, legs, back, etc. Often times we forget about the mind and the spirit, which are intricate parts of the total. If your back has given you problems for years, the pain and negativity drains your spirit and sets your mind into a negative pattern as well. You can feel yourself sinking deeper into the ibis.

By the time you realize that you have entered the depths of despair and depression, you may already have fallen all the way to the bottom. It looks like to hard a climb to get out, but it is possible and I hope to show you how.

I think of the dark hole that we can slip into if we are not careful, as a deep, dark well. Why? I've been there, and from my point of view, it's the best way to describe it. You can fall in so easily, even before you know it, if you're not watching, yet it is difficult to climb out of; especially if you travel so far down it that you hit the bottom.

I am not a psychiatrist, psychologist or psychoanalyst. I am an average person. I have done the work of overcoming depression by myself, in my own way, with the help and support of my husband, son, father, sister, sister-in-law, mother and father in law, and my Doctor Randy Hasson. I set the pace and decided when I was ready for each new step. I found that there really is no "magic pill". Experience is the best teacher. Living through something means truly knowing it. The best lessons in life are learned by falling, then getting up and continuing to get on with the living that is life. One is wiser for the lessons learned along the way. It is hard work to get your life back, but the outcome is your reward because you may find, as I did, that not only do you get your life back, but you get a much improved life that is far better than the one you left behind.

Didn't Columbus dive into the unknown as he traveled uncharted waters? His goal wasn't just to reach the Americas, but to go back and report his discovery. Throughout history men and women have done the same, exploring and reporting. What good is a discovery if the knowledge isn't shared so others can learn from it?

That is why I am writing this book. I have experienced stress, deep depression, and devastating illness. I wish to share with you, what I learned on my journey.

Each "well" is different and there are many different causes for falling into the well. It may take a day, a week, months or years to fall all the way to the bottom. Each decent is unique. Some may trip and begin to fall, but catch themselves, hang on to the side, and pull themselves up before they fall all the way down. Yet, those who get all the way to the bottom will need tools to climb out. I hope to furnish the encouragement to try. Once out, your life will change forever. It will be the new and improved you. You will then have the tools to stay away from this deep, dark hole for the rest of your life!

Life can be exhausting. What are the rules? Who can play? Where are the answers? Who's kidding whom? Who's plastic and who's real? The word stress doesn't even sound positive. How many rats are in the race? I have difficulty finding my keys. How was I to locate sanity in all of life's clutter? Heaps of emotions are scattered from one end of the country to the other. I'd left a trail.

I realized I was making myself sick. Time heals all wounds. Solitude brings clarity. How ill did I have to become to see the light? Where was the light anyway? Was there a light, or was that another of life's jokes on us poor mortals?

How harsh could I be with myself? How much could I beat myself up and how far could I fall? How much is too much? Where was the line? Who was allowed to cross it? Was life lousy or was I lousy at living it? How long could I wallow in my own misgivings and failures? How much self-pity is enough? Can you pump up ego by shooting it full of air like a flat tire? What's the difference between anger and total frustration? Both can make you explode. Can your head ache so much that it does split and is that the meaning of splitting headache? How much "mis" can there be in misery? Is a square peg in a round hole simply misunderstood? What is a perfect fit?

I started the car and headed in the direction of one last hope. I let the road take me, while the radio rocked me over the bumps as well as the slick surfaces. Music doesn't care who you are or where you're going. I headed for the future and left the past behind. I drove day and night, through rain, shine and blowing wind. Where is the yellow brick road? I'm over fifty now. Could an old dog really learn new tricks? It was as if I was seeing the earth for the first time. I'd been standing in line my entire life, and now it was my turn to step up to the plate.

The house was an empty shell, but it welcomed me with a kind of silence. There was an energy here that I needed desperately. It could be felt, not defined. I could only hope that I could learn how to tap into the invisible force I was feeling. This is where my search would begin. I moved everything my life had collected into the house, yet only unpacked the books. Oh, don't worry, I tend to exaggerate, I had a few essentials within easy reach. Toothbrush anyone?

I'd lie on the floor, or sit on the porch, or under a tree, but I spent every day reading. I became a sponge, soaking up thoughts, ideas and theories. I took what I wanted from each selection. I studied, practiced and grew. When I finished devouring the concepts of one, I'd pick up the next book and then the next. The path of books stretched out to include self-help, Buddha, Zen, and I Ching in a yummy variety. Eager for the patient to heal herself I read books on Reiki, alternative medicine and herbal remedies. I studied Gestalt therapy, creative visualization and meditation. I discovered "The Web That Has No Weaver". The books were teaching me and I was eager to learn.

I incorporated Native American wisdom into the mix. I took hands full of dirt and smelled the passing of time. I'd take naps by the river and let its music sooth me into the best sleep I'd had in years. Nature will cradle you. You've only got to make yourself available. I listened to life. It was all around me and whispered in my ear. The birds, crickets, bees buzzing, and even the coyote's howl were all telling me something. I'd been deaf for so many years. I'd forgotten to listen. My eyes also saw with new vision. Things I hadn't even paid attention to since I was a child were like new miracles to me now. My perspective was changing from negative to positive.

I incorporated what I was learning into my daily life. I hope that I'll never let go of the kite string. Many seem to have lost their way. It's not up to me to show them. Each must find a path of our own. It's a personal thing, different for each one of us.

This is my classroom. Life's full of learning lessons. I wonder how many people are playing hooky.

The past is just that. I don't want to live there. The future is nice to think about. Living in this moment is truly the best spot to reside. What a waste if we don't really enjoy it. After all, nothing is forever. I may be gone after this moment is up, so I want to savor it.

Fear and anger suck you dry. Enough of it will suck the life out of our planet. My countless moving was my way of trying to find a better place and attain happiness. I now realize that I was looking in the wrong places. I was always searching outside, thinking I'd find utopia over the next hill or the next, or the next. I thought the key was picking the right location. When I located the center of my being, I'd found the true treasure. It's been there all this time, just waiting for me to discover it. The true wealth of life has been stored within me and once I found it, I found the happiness I'd been searching for. And, I think others know their treasure is buried there too. They just think they can't take the time required to excavate.

First, it should be noted that under NO condition should magnetic therapy be used by anyone wearing cardiac pacemakers or defibrillators, because they are Electro-magnetically programmed. Be sure your doctor is aware that you are interested in and/or are trying magnet therapy. As with any other type of alternative therapy, always consult a physician if you have any serious health problem. And, do your homework first before simply buying and placing magnets on your body.

To understand just what it is that magnet therapy can do for you, one needs to have a basic understanding of the electromagnetic process first. Basically the energy system in our bodies consists of two forces, magnetism and electricity. This electromagnetic energy system is affected by the earth's natural electromagnetic environment. Our energy system contains energy channels that are called meridians. They circulate energy through the body. You may have heard of Yin and Yang in your alternative thinking research. The Yin represents the minus polarity and the Yang represents the positive polarity in the body. Or think of a battery with its - and + sides. The loss of balance in the flow of energies in our system will diminish activity within the cells and thus the body will not be able to function at optimal efficiency.

Both the inner and outer environment constantly influences the balance of our bodies. Magnetic changes in the environment can affect the electromagnetic balance of the human body and contribute to disease. One possible contribution to our dis-ease could be the amount of time we spend in buildings and cars that reduces our exposure to the natural geomagnetic fields of the earth. Researchers suggest that magnetic therapy can be used to counter the effects caused by the electromagnetic pollution in the environment. It is the constant exchange of energy that allows the body to maintain its vital balance. Magnetic therapy, much like acupuncture, re-establishes order in the body's energy filed and this allows healing to take place. It is its ability to influence the magnetic current in the body that gives magnet therapy such a wide range of applications.

Magnetic therapy products have now been designed to provide the natural magnetism that is needed for our body's total wellness. This therapy subtly stimulates the body's own healing mechanism edging it on slowly towards healing in a natural, non- intrusive manner.

You can find ads in catalogs, health magazines and also on television about magnet therapy to relieve pain. There are magnet sole inserts for your shoes that are to help your feet, magnet bars and strips as well as band aid patches. The magnetic products, as well as the claims of what these products can do for you, seems to be endless. One should approach this therapy as you would any other alternative healing method. Ask your doctor, ask friends who have tried it, talk to your Doctor of Oriental Medicine, research the Internet and read up on this or any therapy. After careful consideration you may conclude that this magnetic idea may be something you'd really like to try as part of your program towards wellness.

“What’s the matter? Did you have a bad night?” asks the snorer cheerfully.

I ask you, does a tree falling in the forest make a sound if there is no one there to hear it? Does a snorer really make a noise if there is no one else in the house? Well, that’s not my problem. I do hear it! That sawing, snorting sound at two A.M. really sets the pace for the day ahead.

When confronting the offender with the problem, I’m continually faced with “Who Me?” or a defensive “I don’t snore!” Well, armed with a tape recorder, I made my move one night to gather evidence. After testing the recorder…testing one, two, three, and being assured that the batteries were working, I tiptoed into the cave of the bear. I placed the recorder on the pillow next to the accused. The results were magnificent! I felt as elated as a detective would who has just gathered key evidence. I had him now!

When played back the next morning for the culprit, I was asked, “What in the world is that awful noise? Did you get a bad tape? If I were you, I’d return it for a new one.” I smugly advised my dear partner that it was not a bad tape but a really good one of his offensive “Love Song”. Yes, that is the song you keep singing in my ear night after night, year after year.

People in the past have dubbed snoring as sawing wood and if this is so, we could have built a two-story cabin by now judging by the amount of “sawing” I have heard in our house. The power expended could be tapped into and we could do away with our electric bill. We could power a windmill with the force of it alone.

To snore or not to snore doesn’t seem to be the question here. No matter what we have tried that freight train still comes barreling through our bedroom at about two in the morning!